Club gets county approval for new Nordic skiing trailhead

The Glacier Nordic Club plans to add additional access to the Big Mountain Nordic Trails through Haskill Basin with a new parking lot.

The Flathead County Board of Adjustments last week approved a conditional use permit to allow the club to use and expand a parking lot off Haskill Basin Road for parking to access cross-country ski trails.

A parking lot with space for 10 to 12 vehicles is planned on property owned by F.H. Stoltze Land and Lumber Co and is part of the Haskill Basin conservation easement. Currently, there is parking for up to six cars and a gated trail sits on the property, but that would be moved to allow for the expanded parking lot. The new Nordic trailhead would connect to the trail system within a mile to the west.

Glacier Nordic plans to expand the Big Mountain Nordic Trails to provide groomed skier access from the new parking area and provide plowing for the winter season.

“Glacier Nordic is excited to provide more groomed trails and a second public parking access to the Big Mountain Nordic Trails” said Cameron Blake, Executive Director. “And we especially want to thank Stoltze for working with us to make this possible.”

Currently, the only access to the Big Mountain Nordic trails is at the Big Mountain trailhead that Glacier Nordic shares with Legacy Partners for the Whitefish Trail.

The club has been looking at creating a new trailhead for a few years to give another access to get to the trails and some different terrain. It is possible to ski down there from the upper trailhead on Big Mountain Road, but then skiers have to head back up to their car.

The existing groomed tail network includes 23 km of trails. Since 2010 grooming has ended about three miles from the planned new trail head, and last year grooming was periodically extended to within about 1 mile of the property.

Use of the trails is free and the trails are dog-friendly.

The parking area is 1.6 miles from Edgewood Drive on the west side of Haskill Basin Road. The property zoning allows for a low impact recreational use which restricts daily vehicle trips and as a result Glacier Nordic is requesting that people carpool if possible. Continued use will require that users meet the low-impact guidelines for traffic and only use the existing parking area and do not park on the road.

Glacier Nordic hopes to start grooming and open the parking area as soon as Stoltze completes logging operations in the area.

For grooming and parking lot status visit glaciernordicclub.com. The Big Mountain Nordic Trails are groomed by both Glacier Nordic and Iron Horse Golf Club on lands owned by Stoltze, Winter Sports, Inc/Whitefish Mountain Resort, state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and a private landowner.